Molding machines such as those used in the production of injected molded plastic parts and those used in the production of die-cast metal parts will intermittently produce parts which do not meet acceptable standards and are, therefore, defective. These defective parts must be separated from the acceptable parts, and this is commonly carried out in a manual inspection operation. Preferably, the parts are inspected as they leave the machine so that the production of an inordinate number of defective parts will be promptly detected and the machine shut down for correction of the problem. However, for reasons of economy, space and for other reasons, it is ordinarily not possible to carry out the inspection at this time, and the parts are usually collected in an unsorted condition in a single bin or other receptacle for hand sorting at a later time.
It would be desirable, therefore, to provide a parts sorter which would automatically separate any defective parts from the acceptable parts as they are ejected from the machine. Moreover, where the parts are molded it would be advantageous if the defective parts were further sorted into at least two categories, those in which the parts are incomplete and those in which the parts include an excessive amount of flashing. The incomplete parts result from an insufficient amount of plastic in the mold cavity. By observing the defective parts, the machine operator will be alerted to both the numbers and types of defective parts being produced, and in many cases, the operator can promptly take whatever corrective action is required. Also, by separating the two types of defective parts, the defective parts with the excessive flashing can in many cases be manually trimmed and thus saved.